WSJ: Russia creates new unit for sabotage in Europe

Russia has formed another secret unit to carry out covert attacks in the West, Europe, and other countries, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing Western intelligence sources.

Created in 2023 as a response to Western support for Ukraine, the unit consists of “veterans of some of Russia’s most daring clandestine operations in recent years,” combining elements from various Russian intelligence agencies.

“Known as the Department of Special Tasks (SSD), it is based in the Russian military-intelligence headquarters, a sprawling glass-and-steel complex on the outskirts of Moscow known as the aquarium,” the text reads.

The unit’s operations include assassination attempts, sabotage, and planting incendiary devices on aircraft. The department’s main objectives are: carrying out killings and sabotage abroad, infiltrating Western companies and universities, and recruiting and training foreign agents.

The creation of the department reflects Moscow’s stance against the West amid the ongoing war, with sources indicating that the Kremlin views the West as complicit in Ukraine’s attacks on Russia.

“Russia believes it is in conflict with what it calls ‘the collective West,’ and is acting accordingly, up to and including threatening us with nuclear attack and building up its military,” said James Appathurai, deputy assistant secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in charge of hybrid warfare.

The new unit is believed to be behind several recent attacks in the West, including an attempt on the life of a German arms manufacturer’s director and a plot to plant explosives on DHL planes.

SSD is also working to recruit agents from Ukraine, economically developing countries, and pro-Russia nations like Serbia. The department oversees the Senezh special operations center, where Russia trains its special forces.